Nikolaus Pfaff

Nikolaus Pfaff (2 March 1912-13 June 1944) was a German tank commander during World War II. Born in Iserlohn, German Empire, Pfaff was raised in Lippstadt, and he enlisted in the Wehrmacht during the 1930s. Pfaff became a panzer commander, and he took part in the invasions of Poland and France before seeing action in Operation Barbarossa. In 1944, he was redeployed to France to fight against the Allied invasion of Western Europe, and his tank fought the US Army at the Battle of Bocage. Pfaff's tank was disabled by the American tanks, forcing him to ditch out; he was gunned down by an American tank's machine gun as he left the tank.